New Barons Brewing Eyes Fox Point Location
New Barons has also operated the Fox Point Beer Garden at Longacre Pavilion
That empty corner at 8000 N. Port Washington Road in Fox Point — the one you've driven past countless times wondering "what's going on with that place?" — might finally have a future.
New Barons Brewing Cooperative, the Bay View-based co-op brewery, is moving forward with plans to transform the former Northpoint Service Center into a production brewery and taproom. If approvals and financing align, Fox Point could have a new neighborhood gathering spot by the end of 2026.
New Barons is also no stranger to the North Shore neighborhood, and has operated the Fox Point Beer Garden at Longacre Pavilion (7343 N. Longacre Rd.) in the summer.
The Fast Facts
Location: 8000 N. Port Washington Road, Fox Point (near Bradley and Port Washington)
Who's Behind It: John Degroote, founder and CEO of New Barons Brewing Cooperative, is a Fox Point resident leading the project. The Fox Point concept has been described locally as "Acronym Brewing."
What's Planned: A production brewery with a full-service taproom, indoor and outdoor seating, event space, and a rotating food truck setup with local partnerships to keep food available during most operating hours.
The Timeline: Degroote has indicated the goal is to break ground early in 2026 and open by year's end, assuming the Village approval process and financing come together.
Brewing Capacity: The space is designed to accommodate a 10-barrel brewhouse producing roughly 500 barrels per year, with room to expand later.
New Barons isn't your typical craft brewery. It's Wisconsin's first cooperatively owned brewery and operates as a Milwaukee brewery incubator — meaning it's specifically built to support new brewers and beer brands, with member-owners having an actual voice in the community behind it.
For Fox Point, though, the bigger story is what this could become as a gathering place. The North Shore doesn't have many casual, walkable "third places" where neighbors can bump into each other, linger over a drink, and let kids burn off energy while adults finish a conversation. That's exactly what Degroote is pitching.
The Family-Friendly Angle
New Barons’ beer gardens featured a promotion to “be an owner” of the beer garden and get a mug for free
Drawing on experience from New Barons' beer garden-style events in Fox Point, the outdoor space is envisioned as explicitly family-friendly. Plans include a play area where kids can run around and climb while families enjoy outdoor seating. The design emphasizes indoor-outdoor connection with big windows that let guests see into the brewing operation, plus outdoor music (with Village-imposed restrictions we'll get to in a moment).
The food truck landing would rotate through different vendors, keeping the food options fresh and supporting other local businesses in the process.
What the Village Is Reviewing
To make this happen, the Village of Fox Point is working through zoning approvals connected to the Port Washington Overlay (PWO) District. The Village Board held a public hearing on December 9, 2025, to consider rezoning the property at 8000 N. Port Washington Road to add the PWO designation that would allow the brewery and taproom.
At the Village Board meeting, residents showed up with what you might call a classic North Shore split.
Strong Support For:
Finally activating a long-vacant corner
Creating a community gathering place
Adding a local destination so families don't have to drive elsewhere
Real Concerns About:
Parking and traffic flow (Bradley and Port Washington isn't exactly a quiet intersection)
Safety for kids and pedestrians
Noise levels, especially from outdoor music
Long-term viability and what happens if the "beer garden success" doesn't materialize
The Village Board responded to these concerns by adding a restriction prohibiting outdoor music after 10 p.m. — the kind of compromise that lets a popular project move forward while giving neighbors some guardrails.
What Happens Next
The next big milestones are navigating the remainder of the Village approval process and securing financing. If everything lines up, construction could begin in early 2026 with an opening before the end of the year.
For a corner that's been sitting empty while the North Shore grows up around it, that timeline would be the most momentum this property has seen in years.
The Bottom Line
Will this project actually deliver on the "family-friendly gathering place" promise? That depends on execution — how the outdoor space feels, whether the food truck rotation stays interesting, if parking works, and whether the Village's noise restrictions strike the right balance.
But if it works? This could become one of those North Shore spots where half your social calendar accidentally organizes itself. The Midwest runs on calendars and patios, after all.
And honestly, anything is better than driving past that vacant corner one more time wondering when someone's finally going to do something with it.